Question

In which year did the Indian Sepoys of the British East India Company’s
army raise the banner of revolt for the first time?

Answer 1

There were 4 Sepoy revolts against the Company during it's time in India. The most famous is the 1857 rebellion that resulted in the end of Company rule and transfer of power to the British Crown. But there were two other lesser known mutinies that took place prior to this, at Barrackpore in 1824 and at Fort Vellore in 1806.

However, the first time Sepoy's rebelled against the Company was at Vizagapatam in 1780.

This mutiny was triggered by Sepoys, who had been assured of local duty, being sent all over the state to enforce revenue collection, for which they received no extra pay and suffered the oppressive attitude of British officers. The flashpoint came when discontented Muslim Sepoys refused to board a frigate that was due to transport them to fight against Hyder Ali of Mysore, a fellow Muslim. British officers tried to use force to get them on ship which resulted in the Sepoys opening fire on them, killing several and wounding others. The mutineers proceeded to take the town, loot Company property and capture a number of civil servants, freed a French spy held captive in the local prison and eventually decided to march to join Hyder Ali against the British. They didn't succeed as regiments of British soldiers and loyal Sepoys caught up with and cornered them at Payakraopeta and most were killed during the resulting combat. The survivors, including the mutiny leader, Sheikh Mohammed Khan, who escaped were hunted down over the following months and all were eventually captured and executed.